USFS National Forest System Trails · Idaho Panhandle National Forests · Idaho · Updated June 2026
Bad Tom (USFS trail 164) is a 5.5 mi trail in Idaho Panhandle National Forests, Idaho. Mountain-bike use here is accepted but discouraged in USFS data, with Class 1 e-bikes also designated.
Can I bike Bad Tom?
| Use | Status | Season on record |
|---|---|---|
| Mountain bike | Accepted but discouraged | — |
| Class 1 e-bike (pedal-assist, 20 mph) | Allowed | year-round |
| Class 2 e-bike (throttle, 20 mph) | Allowed | year-round |
| Class 3 e-bike (pedal-assist, 28 mph) | Allowed | year-round |
Zooming out: across Idaho Panhandle National Forests, 6% of rideable trail miles are open to mountain bikes — a Bike Access Grade of F.
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About this trail
In Idaho Panhandle National Forests, Idaho, Bad Tom (USFS trail 164) covers 5.5 mi of National Forest System trail. Everything below comes straight from the US Forest Service National Forest System Trails dataset — length, surface, slope-derived difficulty, and the specific bike and e-bike designations on record — so you can check legality before you load up. USFS records list its surface as native material. Based on slope, this is a Expert trail (grade band 20-30%); that reflects very steep gradient and is not the same as a technical MTB difficulty rating. For traditional mountain bikes, use is discouraged according to USFS data. The record additionally permits Class 1, Class 2, Class 3 e-bike use; recall that Class 1 is pedal-assist, while Class 2 adds a throttle and Class 3 a higher cutoff speed. The route is mapped as USFS Trail Class 2 on the agency's 1-to-5 development scale, where 1 is the most primitive, minimally maintained tread and 5 is the most developed. Because conditions, closures, and local orders change between data refreshes, confirm the current status with the managing ranger district before you ride.
Frequently asked questions
- Can you mountain bike on Bad Tom?
- Mountain-bike use on Bad Tom is discouraged in USFS records, though Class 1 e-bike use is designated. Confirm current rules with the managing ranger district.
- Are e-bikes allowed on Bad Tom?
- Class 1, Class 2, Class 3 e-bikes are designated on Bad Tom in the USFS data.
- How long is Bad Tom?
- Bad Tom measures about 5.5 mi in total, summed across its mapped National Forest System segments.
- What is the surface of Bad Tom?
- USFS data records the tread surface of Bad Tom as native material.
- How difficult is Bad Tom?
- Its grade-based difficulty is Expert (grade band 20-30%), derived from USFS slope data. This reflects steepness, not technical mountain-bike difficulty.
How we read this data
Grade-based difficulty above is the USFS grade (route steepness), not a technical mountain-bike rating — a gentle-grade trail can still be rocky or technical, and vice versa. Bike and e-bike status come verbatim from the USFS managed-use fields for this trail; we never infer access we can't cite. See our methodology for how the dataset is built and what each field means.
Where it is
Approximate location of Idaho Panhandle National Forests (USFS trail geometry isn't mapped).
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